Muddyboots

Follow the fortunes of Muddyboots & Family on their East Yorkshire farm which has changed from dairy farm to luxury ice cream manufacture

Thursday 19 June 2008

a footpath is just that - a footpath



Having lived here for the past 25 years, one of the pleasures has been walking along the field boundaries, down to the sea at Withow gap. So it was that to complement Mr Moo's and the planting of over 2000 native tree species, we set up and have established a 'permissive footpath' [to avoid any confusion this is not a public footpath], with grant aid from DEFRA. The easy walk slowly meanders through the saplings of oak, field maple and rowan, hugging the field boundaries, leading on past WW1 and 2 concrete bunkers once maned by the home guard and the Royal Observer Corps, then sweeping down into what was once a shallow, kettlehole lake resplendent in olden times with its own beaver dam and finally ending down on the beach.

This year, after the wet winter, and as the soil becomes less fertile due to the restricted use of fertilizers, the stewardship grassland has seen a sudden burst of colour as the wild flowers begin to become re-established after years of mono culture in the form of that good old silage mix, rye grass. Buttercups, common vetch, white clover and some sort of trefoil are making a comeback. Sky lark numbers have increased, the barn owls seem to appreciate the short clipped grass of the trail, roe deer hide in the long grass. Oh l feel a 'Bill Oddie' moment coming on.

So it is with some annoyance that a local 'chav' family have decided that the footpath makes a wonderful race track for their clapped out motor bikes. The buggers have stretched the barbed wire alongside the kissing gate. Hubby has already tackled these rural yobs. l have been adding broken fence posts and concrete slabs in an effort to halt the blighter's fun or to at least puncture the tyres. The only real way to stop the prats, is to replace the 6 feet of fence with 2 strands of barbed wire and rabbit netting. Perhaps some caltrops might be the answer..

13 comments:

Un Peu Loufoque said...

Oh how horrid some ignorant people can be in thier respect or rather lack of it for countryside. I sahll send you a packet of french roofing crochets, wicked metal things wiht a sharp spike on one end designed for hamemring into teh wooden roof panels but splendid at ripping open car tyres, I have had to have 3 tyres repalced over hte last year due to thier effectiveness so I can vouch for that..no old WW2 landmines about I suppsoe?

Sally Townsend said...

Oh how annoying, you know how passionately I feel about footpath issues. A Chav in Somerset is actually trying to do away with kissing gates/styles altogether, probably because the frightfully awful man has built his obnoxious gates over an ancient droveway and has a court case looming so he wants to appear very obliging to disabled walkers and buggy pushers. Soooo transparent and getting up all the other local farmers/landowners noses. There's always one family who don't know how to behave isn't there ? Yuk.

muddyboots said...

well as an update some 'baarrrstard'has lifted the said kissing gate off its hinges this evening. We have restored the gate to its former glory by the way. alls well [4 now] in Moo Land

Chris Stovell said...

How berludy annoying... shall we come up with our chainsaws? Hope you win.

Anonymous said...

Your post started off reminding me of the beautiful countryside I have here. Our Stewardship Scheme has enabled the wildlife to flourish too and it's wonderful to see it for oneself. But to have inconsiderate toerags on the land with motorbikes and the like would absolutely infuriate me to bursting. Thick barbed wire, electric fencing and spikes. That should do the trick!!

CJ xx

Grouse said...

We have some of this in the Peak District-a problem indeed- but this weekend is the problem of the solstice hijackers....the grots and grommits who swarm over our druid landmarks, leaving a trail of mess and destruction in their wake

Frances said...

Gosh, this just makes me so sad. Here I am in New York, where there's not much natural beauty at all, and all sorts of signs saying don't spit, or do other sorts of anti-social stuff, and I am thinking, if only the folks who do the anti-social stuff here knew of a more beautiful atmosphere, they would not do such stuff.

Well, if they are bent on the bad stuff, I guess they would.

Hoping that your path will so be beautifully clear again.

xo

Westerwitch/Headmistress said...

Why oh why do the thoughtless minority have to go and spoil it - put down a police type 'stinger' . . . that'll stop them.

Wanna borrow my chainsaw . . . call for twisted emoticon here . . .

Yorkshire Pudding said...

You could shoot the chavs. Decent people would not complain. Bury them on the beach. 25 years? Hey, even though I was born and bred in ER you have lived there a lot longer than me.

Bluestocking Mum said...

So lovely to catch up on your news! That's what I love about your blogs...I haven't read any for months and I have just caught up on everything within half an hour!

I plan a visit to Scarborough/Brid on our way up to Northumberland early in the 6 week holidays...so be warned...I may surprise you one day!

take care
warmest wishes
xx

Milkmaid said...

We are having problems with our footpaths, folk seem to want to wander where they please. One chap even told S off for not having a sign telling him they WASN'T a footpath where he was. They are enough yellow arrows to tell you where the paths are, so if you can't see one surely you off the path, some people are just prats

Hadriana's Treasures said...

I know this is completely off the point but I share your love of books with a Roman theme e.g. Lindsay Davis. I recently wrote to her and she wrote back to me! I was chuffed to bits. You could always write to her via her website (www.lindsaydavis.co.uk) and she would probably come up with a nice solution for the chavs!

Hadriana's Treasures said...

should be Lindsey Davis (with due adjustment to website details as well)...apologies!

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